Breaking Free
by Mionefan
Summary: Harry Potter and Hermione Granger disappear from the magical world when Harry breaks free of potions control. Bad, Dumbledore, Weasleys, McGonagall.
1. Chapter 1

**Breaking Free**

A/N: The usual disclaimers, not my characters, no money being made etc. JKR owns the books and characters. Any additional characters or settings are mine.

Genera is Crime/Romance

Rating is M for future chapters. Story is of course AU.

Ship is Harry/Hermione

* * *

Chapter 1.

"Lose the mudblood Potter!" Ron Weasley commanded, as he saw Harry sitting beside Hermione Granger. A smirk played on his lips as he saw Harry start to comply. Those potions that Dumbledore supplied him to keep Potter in control were amazing. He'd keep the jumped up half-blood minding him for as long as it took to get his hands on some of the Potter fortune. He scowled as he thought of the previous years, not knowing that Potter was rich and Dumbledore hadn't told him. Dumbledore had let it slip to his mum last year when he thought it was time to push his sister Ginny into a marriage contract with the boy to spread the Potter wealth around a bit.

Albus had so far been unable to touch the main Potter vault at Gringotts, but had seriously depleted his trust vault every year, leaving just enough to give the impression that he had a great deal of money. In truth, he'd salted the stacks of Galleons with Knuts underneath, leading the observer to believe there was a vast fortune in the vault when in reality there was only a few hundred Galleons and thousands of Knuts. That would all change when the Weasley girl married him and gained control of the main Potter vault. After she gained control, he would simply kill the boy. The Goblins had tried to interfere, but since he'd declared himself Potter's magical guardian, they couldn't do anything.

The mudblood Granger had introduced herself to Mr. Potter this year when they had boarded the train together. Ron had been delayed by his mother giving last minute instructions. Harry had simply continued onto the Hogwarts Express with Hermione finding a seat for them both. When Ron caught up to them, they were conversing animatedly, seemingly happy. That would not do! They weren't even in the same house, Granger being in Ravenclaw and Potter where he belonged in Gryffindor with Ron and Ginny.

Unfortunately for Ron, he'd forgotten to dose Harry that morning and Harry was already starting to recover from the Imperious potion. He liked the bushy-haired witch and wondered why he'd never tried to make friends with her before. As Ron spoke the words, he could feel the compulsion to obey and started to rise, when he saw the look on Hermione's face. Her face fell and a look of desolation overcame her.

Hermione had always felt an attraction to Harry Potter, but didn't know how to approach him. It was now sixth year and she was growing desperate. Ignored by most of the school, even though she was uncommonly brilliant. Her blood status, being muggleborn worked to isolate her from most of the school, even her own housemates generally looked down on her and bullied her. The teachers were no help, although her head of house, Professor Flitwick, was very supportive. She was a shy, retiring girl, with a drive to excel in everything she did. Almost hidden in the student population, Hermione worked very hard to be the top student every year. She had no friends, but now that Harry Potter had talked to her before boarding the train and seemed genuinely impressed with her intelligence, she had smiled and engaged in conversation. He was very nice, but she could sense that something was off with him. At times, she would look at him and see a faraway look in his gorgeous green eyes. It was almost like he had spaced out and now the look had returned. Intimidated by the arse that was Ronald Weasley, she started to get up to leave when a very strange thing happened.

"NO!" Harry shouted as his faraway look disappeared and anger suffused his face.

Harry had felt odd all morning and could not put a name to the feeling. A clarity of mind would brush him at odd moments this morning and the later it got, the clearer his mind became. When Ron commanded him to leave Hermione, something snapped as he started to obey. He'd been enjoying talking to the bushy-haired witch that had accompanied him from the platform and did not intend to give that up.

The startled look on Ron Weasley's face quickly turned to a scowl. "What did you say, Potter? You WILL do as I say!"

"I said NO, arsehole!" and he punctuated that declaration with a fist to his gut.

Ron dropped, holding his stomach, trying to catch his breath. Harry followed it up with an uppercut to Ron's chin, laying the redhead out cold.

Hermione was stunned. "H-Harry? W-what?" she stuttered.

"Let's go, Hermione, this won't be good when he wakes up." Harry grabbed Hermione's hand and urged her out of the compartment.

The train had just started to move as the pair left the train. Standing together at the far end of the platform, Harry scanned the mostly deserted platform, satisfied that no one had noticed the pair leave the train.

"But Harry, what about school?" Hermione asked, panicking slightly.

"You don't know what I've been through, Hermione! We're both in danger, maybe you almost as much as me. We're not safe there. Let's move, it's not safe here either. I'll fill you in when we find a safe place. You'll have to tell your parents as well. We can't leave them unprotected. That will be our first concern. I know we haven't spent much time together, but you'll have to trust me on this. I'll explain everything, but first, how do we get to your parents' place?"

Hermione struggled to understand what Harry was telling her. "Um, maybe they haven't left the station yet. The car park is close by at St. Pancras Station."

"I'll follow you, hurry," he urged. "They won't know I'm missing until the train gets to Hogsmeade Station. By then we can be far away."

Walking quickly, Hermione led Harry off the platform, out the front and around the adjacent St. Pancras Station until they spotted Hermione's parents just getting into their auto, a nice BMW five series. "Mum, Dad!" she called and her mum turned as she recognised her daughter's voice.

"Hermione? What on earth? I thought you were on the train. And who is this with you?"

Practically running, she paused in front of her mother, a little out of breath. "Mum, we need to get out of here soon. This is my friend, Harry Potter. Mum, he says we are in danger! Daddy, can you drive us somewhere that you know is safe?"

"Gracious, Hermione, what's happening?"

"No time, Mum. Get in, Harry! He'll explain once we're underway."

Hermione introduced them to Harry and they shook hands. Monica and Wendell Granger were bright attractive parents. Monica had Hermione's slightly bushy but blonde hair and a slender figure with green eyes. Wendell had Hermione's chocolate brown eyes and straight brown hair.

"Hermione and I got caught up in a bit of trouble at King's Cross after we were seated on the train," Harry explained when they were seated. "I started talking to Hermione, and one of the boys at our school has been controlling me for a couple of years, through potions. I broke through this morning and came to my senses when he told me to leave Hermione. Now she's in danger as well once word gets out. You, being her parents, will also be in danger, as they will try to control you to report where we are. Failing that, it could quickly spiral out of control and you would be hurt or worse, killed to make a point. These wizards are not very nice people, although some are worse than others. Almost everyone at school is untrustworthy, although I know a few that might be. People pretend to be my friend, but I haven't had any true friends for years now. Most have been driven off. You know Luna Lovegood, Hermione? I trust her, and Neville Longbottom. But that's it and those two have been potioned to obey the Headmaster and stay away from me, although Luna may have broken free as well."

"Luna! She's a year below us, Harry. She's a little odd, but I like her. What about Padma Patil? She seems nice enough?"

"Padma is Parvati's twin and Parvati is definitely not trustworthy," Harry warned.

The two parents and two teens were soon away, travelling north and east they wound up an hour and a quarter later pulling into at a small dental clinic in Cambridge.

Hermione and Harry followed her parents inside. It was early afternoon and everyone was hungry.

Wendell mentioned take away and Monica volunteered to get something from the local pizza place.

* * *

_On the Hogwarts Express:_

Ginny made her way back to the compartment that Ron and Harry were in, smirking to herself. Harry was fully under their control now and it would be easy to get him to propose to her this year. After the marriage, Dumbledore would see that Harry was a good little boy and turned over control of his parents vault to her and then he would simply 'disappear'. An accident with the Death Eaters and they would all be rich.

Entering the compartment, Ginny gasped. Her brother Ron was lying in an awkward position on the seats, head lolled to one side. Blood seeped from his nose and a large purple bruise adorned his chin. She shook him and finally had to take her wand and cast an enervate to wake him.

"What happened?" she screeched. "Where's Harry?"

Ron groggily shook his head, rubbing his chin and stomach. "He hit me! That shouldn't have been possible. Find him!"

"What? That's impossible, he should still be under the potions. You did remember to give them to him this morning?" she glared at her brother.

Ron flinched as he thought back. "Erm, I may have forgotten, we were in such a rush."

"You idiot! Well, he can't have gone far," she snarled. "You check the rear and I'll check forward. Be careful, take someone with you. Harry has been getting more powerful lately. I'll round up the twins." She glared again at her dimwitted brother.

"Wait," Ron called. "That mudblood Granger might be with him. They were talking when I came in."

"Granger? That bushy-hared know-it-all? Why would he talk to her?"

"Dunno, but when I told him to lose her, he yelled 'NO' and hit me."

Ginny cast the stink eye at him and growled. "Go, we'll deal with her later. Stun her when you find her. I'll teach her to interfere!"

Minutes later, they met up in the compartment. "They're not on the train," Ron proclaimed.

"You looked in all the compartments?" Ginny questioned acerbically. "Ron, they must me here, they're too young to apparate, besides, you can't apparate on the Hogwarts Express."

"Yes, I checked all the compartments, twice in fact. Neither are on board."

"They must have left before the train started. Oh this won't be good when Dumbledore finds out. Where do you think they went?" Ginny pondered.

"Well, not the Dursleys for sure, he hates them. Probably the mudblood's place.

"We'll have to send an owl to Dumbledore. I'll get Pig," Ron answered.

"Really, Ron! That bird is practically useless. We'll be in Hogsmeade before it gets there."

* * *

**_Elsewhere on the train:_**

Luna Lovegood was humming to herself, a small smile on her lips. The quirky blonde had seen what others had not. She had noticed Harry and Hermione leave the train before it left. _'They'll be safe now.'_ She thought to herself. _'I suppose I should have left with them.'_

Neville had also been wondering what had happened to Harry, but his mind was still a bit confused from the potion. His Gran had noticed he seemed to be a bit distracted that summer, but put it down to the stress of school.

Fred and George were furious when their siblings couldn't find Harry. Harry would be their ticket to success in their shop they were going to open in Diagon Alley. They needed more capital and Harry had more than enough to go around. Dumbledore had assured them money would be no problem. They also had designs on the Granger girl. She was scarily brilliant and would be a great addition to their prank shop. Never mind that under control of Dumbledore's potions, they could also have fun taking turns with her and she'd never know that she was being used as their own personal slag. Getting her away from her parents would be simple after this year. They might even share her with Percy. Charley and Bill might even be invited to partake of her charms. Both twins knew a good thing when they saw it and the fact that she was a mudblood was all the better. No one could complain as muggleborns were at the bottom of the social ladder and had practically no rights. Maybe they'd start adding their own potions to control her this year.

Molly and Arthur were blissfully unaware that Harry had broken through the mind control potions they had been feeding them, but when they found out…

* * *

**_Back at the Granger's dental office:_**

Monica returned with two large pizzas and a bottle of wine. After consuming the food and wine, Harry began the tale.

After the Granger family found out the truth of what had been happening, they were incensed.

Hermione was the first to splutter her indignance. "Urgh! Those people! How could they? When I get my hands on those…those…cretins!"

"Easy Hermione," Harry soothed. "We can't have any contact with them. They have Dumbledore and who knows who else on their side. One excursion right away to Diagon Alley to visit Gringotts is the only contact we can chance with the wizarding world for now. I have to check my vaults. I overheard Mrs. Weasley telling Mr. Weasley that Dumbledore has been almost draining my trust vault every year. I want to ensure that stops."

Wendell was thinking and finally spoke. "Harry, when Dumbledore figures out what happened, he'll start looking for you. Is there any way the goblins collaborate with normal banks?"

"Umm, I'm not sure, Mr. Granger. I would think that Barclays might know since it's one of the largest banks. How to approach them though? I couldn't just ask them if they deal with a wizarding bank."

"Ah, but I could ask them if they deal with Gringotts Bank. I happen to be good friends with the branch bank manager here in Cambridge," Wendell replied. "You two will not be returning to Hogwarts, obviously. You do need to complete your schooling and it might be a good idea to do that at another school. A public or private school might be a good idea. You can always attend another wizarding school when the heat dies down a bit. Might have to wait a year, but there must be other schools that will accept you."

"Do you speak French, Harry?" Monica questioned.

"I'm afraid not, Mrs. Granger," Harry answered.

"Well, Beauxbatons is out then unless you can learn French in a year. Hermione could teach you. You'll stay with us, of course," Monica insisted.

"Are you sure? I wouldn't want to impose…"

"We insist, Harry," Wendell declared. "Hermione's letters home always mentioned you…"

"Dad!" Hermione blushed pink at the thought of what the letters to her parents hinted at.

"Now dear, we both know that you've had a massive crush on him for years," Monica teased.

If possible, Hermione's face blushed an even brighter red all the way down to her neck. "MUM!"

Harry glanced at Hermione, his face also turning pink. "Really, Hermione? I-I thought I was the only one… erm, that is, oh bugger it, I really like you, Hermione but I've been controlled these last two years, and I couldn't say or do anything."

A wide grin spread over Hermione's face and she squealed, grabbing Harry in a hug.

"Ooof, Hermione, can't breathe!" he complained, but secretly liked the hug.

"Come on, Harry we need to visit the bank before it closes," Wendell urged.

* * *

As it turned out, Mr. Duncan was well aware of Gringotts and the wizarding world, being a squib.

"Is it possible to transfer my funds from my Trust Vault to Barclays?" Harry enquired. "I can't touch my parents' Family Vault until next year when I turn seventeen, and I think Dumbledore doesn't have access to it either. I don't know how much is left in my Trust Vault, but I want it locked so nobody but me can access it."

Mr, Duncan replied with a grin. "That should be easy enough. Do you know who your contact is at Gringotts?"

"Griphook, as far as I know, although I've only been there once in first year," Harry replied.

"Do you have your key, Mr. Potter?"

"No, Mrs. Weasley has it, as she does all my shopping," Harry replied.

"You gave your key to someone else?" Mr. Duncan looked at Harry in surprise. "You do realise that you've virtually turned over your vault to someone else! That's just not done. This is bad!"

"But I had no choice," Harry replied worriedly. "I wasn't allowed out of where I was staying."

Mr. Duncan raised his eyebrows at that, but replied. "Well, it's a bit awkward, but I think we can manage to at least lock the vault down. I'll see if we can somehow gain access another way. Perhaps we can have a meeting with Griphook and obtain a replacement key, or at least transfer funds to Barclays. I'll need to set up an account here and I need some form of official documentation."

"Documentation? Umm, what would that be? I really don't have anything," Harry replied.

"Well, if Griphook can get here, a blood sample would do. That's the only thing besides keys Gringotts recognizes anyway.

I think I can contact him, so if you'll have a seat and wait, we should have you sorted out very quickly.

Ten minutes later, Griphook arrived and after a blood test to ascertain his identity and a glaring look that intimated that he was most unhappy that he had surrendered his key to unscrupulous people, he issued a new key. "Don't EVER let this key out of your possession again, Mr. Potter. I'm afraid much damage has already occurred to your vault holdings. Fortunately it was only your Trust Vault, not the main Potter Heritage Vault. Mr. Duncan has indicated that you want to lock both vaults down, allowing only yourself access; is that correct?"

"Thank you Griphook, yes that is correct. I'd also like to transfer the remains of my Trust Vault to Barclays Bank under my new account here. Is this vault refilled from the main Potter vault each year?"

"That is correct Mr. Potter, the withdrawals for this year have not been made yet, but I expect the Headmaster will make them within the day. We can lock him out and all others effective immediately."

"Excellent, I would appreciate the service. If you are able, I'd like an accounting just how much has been removed before today and by whom, also how much is left in my accounts."

"That can be done, but it may take a day or so. I understand you are not returning to school, so I can deliver the statements to this bank. You are aware that the main Potter Heritage Vault may not be touched until you are of age, in this case seventeen. When you come of age, Mr. Potter, you will find yourself very wealthy. The Potter account is quite sizable and quite likely our largest account."

Wendell spoke up at last, "What about the money my daughter has already paid to Hogwarts for this year's education?"

"Ah, that also is in a trust account, but a different one. We can remove it and return it to you, Mr. Granger."

The group smiled at this turn of events. It seems that things were finally going their way.

* * *

Leaving the bank after securing a new account for Harry, the group went to a hotel to decide their next move.

Wendell and Monica were worried. Harry led them to believe they would not be safe in their own home. Fortunately, Monica's mother was still alive and living not too far away. A quick ring to her and a brief holiday visit was arranged until suitable safe long term accommodation could be secured.

Elizabeth (Bertie) Kelsey was an older woman, now in her early sixties and welcomed her daughter and family plus Harry enthusiastically. "Monica, Wendell and of course Hermione! It's been almost a year since you last visited. And who is this fine young man?" she asked with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.

Hermione introduced Harry with a faint blush that Bertie caught at once.

"Ah, a young boyfriend, and a nice pleasant one at that. You'll stay for dinner of course," she stated, brooking no argument.

Both Harry and Hermione blushed at the suggestion of boyfriend, but neither denied it, much to Wendell's surprise.

Bertie knew Hermione was a witch, as she had been told after witnessing accidental magic several times when Hermione was younger. "So, children, not attending school this year?" she enquired.

Harry looked at Hermione and she nodded, understanding that they'd have to tell her something. Hermione took up the challenge, not wanting to frighten her grandmother. "Harry and I won't be attending our wizarding school this year, Gran. We feel it's getting too dangerous and we'll eventually attend another school next year. This year, we'll be home tutored in the normal world in case we aren't able to reintegrate into the wizarding world. We both have six years of normal schooling to catch up.

"Harry has had an especially hard time at school these past five years and if we wait much longer, we'll be hopelessly behind our age group. Five years schooling in one will be extremely difficult, but I think we can manage," Hermione replied.

Monica brought forward the other problem that was foremost in her mind. "Mum, we'll have to move; as Harry stated, we're not safe, even at home. No one knows of you, but I won't think of endangering you as well. I'll ring a removal service and relocate far away from here. The business will have to go, of course, but we can start over. The removal company should be able to move our office as well. We just have to decide where we want to live."

Elizabeth blanched at this. "I had no idea it was that serious! You'll keep in contact with me, Monica. I don't need to know where you live, but I won't lose touch with my only daughter and her family! I won't stand for it!" she stated firmly.

After dinner, the family sat around making plans. The removal company was contacted and assured them that they could carry out the two removals starting tomorrow and would put their belongings in storage until notified. Wendell was taking no chances and declined to give an address until they were settled on a new house. Now came the hard part. Where to live?

…...


	2. Chapter 2

**Breaking Free**

A/N: The usual disclaimers, not my characters, no money being made etc. JKR owns the books and characters. Any additional characters or settings are mine.

Genera is Crime/Romance

Rating is M for future chapters. Story is of course AU.

Ship is Harry/Hermione

**A/N:** I've had to add a bit to this for Luna to fix a problem a reviewer spotted.

* * *

**Chapter 2.**

**_Headmaster's office, Hogwarts:_**

Albus sat back in his chair pondering this afternoon's events. He had not been able to retrieve Harry's school payment for this year. Minerva informed him that Ms. Granger's payment had been withdrawn as well. That was unexpected as Ms. Granger was perhaps the brightest student at Hogwarts. Surely she would not have withdrawn until she'd completed her NEWTS. Puzzling, but there seemed to be no other explanation. He'd have to check with her parents; perhaps Minerva could do that while he checked why Gringotts refused to forward Mr. Potter's tuition, saying that the account was locked. A suspicion began to arise in his mind. The Weasleys had been controlling Potter all summer and nothing untoward was said. Surely he would be able to explain when he arrived this evening. A frisson of fear crept unbidden into his mind. What if…? But that was dismissed as unlikely. The potions were administered regularly; Harry would have no idea or at least no way to break through them. Still, the boy was quite powerful for his age. Producing a corporeal patronus at thirteen was unheard of, but he had managed it, and a very powerful one at that.

Minerva McGonagall was upset. Albus wanted her to check on the Grangers at their home. Evidently he suspected that Ms. Granger had withdrawn from Hogwarts. _'Ridiculous,'_ she thought. _'Ms. Granger loved learning too much to drop out.'_

* * *

Meanwhile, the removal company had pushed up their timetable when Mr. Granger had rang again and urged them to begin that evening. They had just finished the house and departed when McGonagall arrived and knocked on the door. Waiting for a few minutes, she decided that they may have gone out to dinner. She would wait. An hour and a half later, there was still no sign of them returning. Looking around, she saw that nobody was watching, she unlocked the door and was startled to find the house empty. Checking further, it looked like it was a very recent move, as the house had not been cleaned after the move. Now she was worried. This must have been a sudden move, as no forwarding address was given. Where could they have gone?

By the time she had remembered that the Grangers were dentists and had an office, that too was abandoned and empty. She had a very bad feeling about this. Albus would want to know.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Hogwarts Express had arrived at Hogsmeade and the students were returning to the castle. Minerva apparated back just in time to take one of the carriages back. There seemed to be some sort of uproar among several students. Walking into the castle, Minerva was confronted by Albus.

"Minerva, Harry Potter is missing! The Weasleys just informed me that he was not on the train! What of Ms. Granger?

Albus had a feeling that the two missing students were somehow connected. Ron Weasley had been assaulted on the train before it left and both Potter and Granger were not on the train when it left.

"The Grangers have disappeared, Albus. Their home and office are empty. Evidently they were in a hurry to leave."

'_Damn!'_ Albus thought. "Bring the younger Weasleys to my office at once. It appears that Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger have decided not to attend. This is a disaster!"

"But where could they have gone on such short notice. Mr. Potter and Ms. Granger were certainly on the train before it left; they were seen."

"I don't know, but when I find them…" he left the rest unsaid, but thought of some very unpleasant consequences for the pair. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he felt a headache coming.

* * *

Meanwhile, Tom Riddle was pacing his headquarters. His inner circle stood by attentively as he ranted. "That old fool and the brat have got to be destroyed!" _'They hurt me this time and that's something I won't put up with,'_ he thought.

"Lucius, I have a job for you!" he snarled.

At the mention of a job in that tone, Lucius Malfoy shivered. It was never good when the Dark Lord assigned a job in that tone of voice. Usually it meant something unpleasant or dangerous.

"Find the Potter brat and any of his friends! I want Potter brought here alive and the rest of them destroyed!"

* * *

Ron and Ginny knew they were in trouble when a grim looking Professor McGonagall summoned them and told them to follow her to the headmaster's office.

Ron winced, knowing he'd been careless. When Potter was found, he'd make sure he remember that he defied him! "Damn him!" he swore. "That mudblood had something to do with that, I'll bet. Well, she won't last long when I get ahold of her."

As the pair followed McGonagall into the headmaster's office, they could see that they were in deep trouble. "Mr. Weasley," Albus intoned harshly, "was it so hard to do this one simple thing and keep Mr. Potter under control? Are you so simple minded that you can't follow a simple order? And you, Ms. Weasley, you were tasked to keep an eye on Mr. Potter. What happened?"

Ginny winced, knowing she shared some of the blame. She knew Ron was lazy and thought only when it came to food and how much he could scarf down before it disappeared. "Er, we were in a bit of a rush…" she tried.

"Bah, excuses! What really happened?"

Ron looked down at his feet and said quietly, "I forgot to give him the potion, sorry Professor."

"YOU FORGOT? YOU IDIOT! Well, that's just dandy! Professor McGonagall tells me that the Grangers have disappeared as well and their house and business are empty. You two will be in detention until the pair are found! Filch will have a pair of helpers every night for as long as it takes to find those two. They will be obliviated, of course and Ms. Granger will be lucky to survive. Mr. Potter, however will remain in the castle under my direct…'supervision'.

Ron didn't like the sound of that. "But, but the Granger mudblood has been promised to my brothers…" he stuttered fearful that George and Fred would take the loss of Granger personally and take their revenge on him.

"Oh, you've promised, have you? Well, that's too bad." An evil smirk made its way to Albus' face. He knew what the twins were capable of. "That just made up my mind. Ms. Granger will suffer, but not at their hands. I have something special for her before she dies."

Both Ginny and Ron shuddered when they heard that. Dumbledore could be very vindictive when crossed. Even Minerva shivered at the thought.

"Now then, a tracking charm I've attached to Mr. Potter should show us where he is." Albus turned to his silver instruments, only to discover they had suddenly stopped working. "What? That's impossible! I knew I should have checked earlier! Damn!" he swore. He went to another instrument he used to keep track of the other students, only to discover that the mudblood's tracking was also not working. "That damn girl! She must have noticed all the tracking charms and somehow disabled them."

Calling his Potions Professor, Albus dismissed the others. Severus Snape was his tool to control the other houses. Slytherin, he knew, needed no such control, as Severus heavily favoured his own house.

"You called, Albus?" the greasy-haired unpleasant man sneered.

"Severus, I need you to check your 'sources' for any hint of where Harry Potter and Hermione Granger are. Use all available 'resources'"

"So, the brat and the mudblood have gone missing. I told you not to trust those damn Weasleys. When was their last contact with them?"

"At the beginning of the train journey, Severus. It seems that Potter broke free of the controlling potions and followed the mudblood before the train left London.

* * *

Monica noticed the muggle clothes Harry wore under his robes. "Harry, I think we should replace those old clothes. How long have you been wearing them?"

"Erm...these are the only clothes I was allowed to wear, Mrs. Granger. The Dursleys made me wear my cousin's old clothes, even though they don't fit very well. The Weasleys are a poor family so they didn't comment on them," Harry blushed in embarrassment.

"Well, that won't do! We'll get you new clothes, those are much too big for you and they look terrible," Monica declared.

They had shopped in Cambridge before driving to Bertie Kelsey's home. Harry now had decent clothing for the first time ever. Hermione, ever the thinker of the pair, suggested that they destroy their school robes as well.

"There's no telling whether the Headmaster has placed tracking charms on everything," Hermione reasoned.

The unknown tracking charms failed once the robes and his other clothes had been burned. Just to be safe, Hermione did the same.

After dinner at Bertie's home, they were exhausted and she gently urged them to stay the night.

"Please stay as long as you can, you can't have made any plans where to live yet. A few days to unwind and plan will do you good."

The Kelsey home was certainly large enough to accommodate them, as Bertie had simply closed off the extra rooms when Monica married and her husband had died. A quick dusting and removal of the cover sheets had made the three spare rooms nicely habitable. Harry and Hermione took two of the rooms, with Monica and Wendell using the third.

Bertie brought spare bed sheets, blankets and pillows and the family settled down for the night.

Hermione was first up the next morning and managed to get cleaned up just as Harry rose.

"Your turn, Harry," she grinned, seeing the sleepy boy rubbing his eyes. "The loo is free and you may want to shower."

By seven, the Granger family had gathered in the dining room where plates of eggs and bacon were already waiting. Bertie was just in the process of making toast when Harry made his way down.

"Morning, everyone," he greeted. "I seem to have overslept. I would have loved to help make breakfast."

"Now, Harry," Bertie gently scolded, "you are a guest and as such, I won't have you working in the kitchen."

After breakfast, they all moved to the lounge room for discussions. Harry had insisted on helping clean the dishes and Bertie had relented.

"Harry," Hermione broke in, remembering something important, "our wands. We can't use them, there will still be the Trace on them."

"Can that be removed?" Harry questioned.

"Well, the Trace breaks when we are of age. For me, that'll be September 19. You'll still have to wait a year, I'm afraid, unless…" she trailed off, thinking hard. "We don't have access to the proper books, but maybe I can figure out a way to remove it. It'll have to wait until my birthday though."

Harry smiled. He knew there was a reason she was placed in Ravenclaw. She was truly the most brilliant witch at school.

They'd spent most of the day relaxing and planning.

The Granger family plus Harry had debated where to live, now that they were out of immediate danger. Britain was ruled out as there was a chance Harry could be spotted by some random magical person. Never mind that Dumbledore and Voldemort would have their people out scouring the country for him.

France was still an option, the Delacour family would remember him from the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and Fleur was definitely a friend after he'd saved Gabrielle and her. Ireland was considered but discarded–there were too many students and wizards that knew of him. Seamus Finnigan would probably tell his mother and god knows who else; no, Ireland would not be safe. Any of the Commonwealth countries would pose a problem as he could be easily extradited. America was a possibility, but Harry didn't have a passport.

As the list of possible countries dwindled, France became more attractive. How to get Harry there was the problem. While the Chunnel was the obvious way, Harry still needed a passport. The Grangers usually spent the winter holidays in Switzerland or France skiing so their passports were up to date.

Harry was thinking hard, then a thought occurred to him. "I have my invisibility cloak, I could hide under it when you drive to Folkestone," he suggested.

"You have an invisibility cloak?" Hermione gasped. "How did you get that?"

"I got it from Dumbledore in first year for Christmas. It was my fathers' I'm sure he's forgotten that I still have it. The Weasleys never confiscated it and only Ron ever saw it. He's so dumb that he won't remember, since I rarely used it."

"Do you think Dumbledore put a tracking charm on it?" Hermione wondered.

"No, that was before I was controlled by potions and only ever used it once."

Hermione smiled. "I think France is the place. We'll have to find out where the Delacour home is. I have Crookshanks, where's Hedwig?"

"She was at the Owlery at Hogwarts; at least that's where I sent her when I left the Burrow."

As if in answer, there was a tapping on the kitchen window and the Snowy Owl's head appeared.

"Hedwig!" Harry exclaimed, rushing to let her in.

Hedwig had been his constant companion throughout his school years and had formed a bond as his familiar. She always knew where he was, although nobody else knew of the familiar bond they had. That would have been bad, had Albus known.

She settled on his shoulder and lightly nipped his ear affectionately as he fed her some bacon.

"Can we use her to send a letter to the Delacours?" Hermione suggested.

"That's a great idea, Hermione."

A letter was quickly composed, asking if they could visit and directions. With the letter firmly attached to her leg, Hedwig winged away.

* * *

Luna was wondering what had happened to Harry and Hermione after they left the train. Hermione was a year ahead of her and should have been in the dorm by now. She'd have to cover for them. Asking around, she only got shrugs and negative answers. Padma Patil had been the only other friend she had in Ravenclaw and although she liked Neville Longbottom, he was in Gryffindor and was likely controlled by the teachers. Luna was quite certain she was the only one that couldn't be controlled. Her mind was organized quite differently than most magical folk. Most thought she was "loony" and some called her that, but that was something that they wouldn't understand. Luna was not placed in Ravenclaw by accident. Besides Hermione, she was perhaps the second smartest witch in Hogwarts. The dreamy persona she manifested was her way of keeping rude and stupid people away. Padma had made an effort to befriend her and for that she was grateful. Hermione was also her friend and she trusted her. Padma was at a loss to know what had happened to Hermione. Luna wouldn't trust her with what she knew though. Hermione and Harry had to be protected.

"I thought I saw Hermione on the train with Harry Potter, but that couldn't be. Ron Weasley was always with him along with his sister. They both hated Hermione, dismissing her as a worthless muggleborn. Pureblood bigots!" Padma spat in disgust.

"No, you're right, Hermione was sitting with Harry before the train left. I didn't want to disturb them; they looked to be in an intense conversation," Luna replied. "Come to think of it, I didn't see them when the train started. Did they leave? That's the only thing that makes sense. But why…?" _'Harry must have been under potion control and broken free!'_ she realised. _'But why did Hermione leave too?'_ That was a question she didn't have an answer to at the moment, but she was determined to find out. She'd figured part of it out, but the rest eluded her for now.

* * *

Molly Weasley was livid! Ron had forgotten the potions for Harry and now Harry was missing. What had the Granger mudblood have to do with anything, she wondered? Fred and George had talked about enslaving the bint, but why had she disappeared along with Harry? There was something Ron had not told her. If Harry was with her, that would be bad. That girl was scarily smart; too smart for her own good. Why would a Ravenclaw even speak to a Gryffindor? It made no sense. She'd have to talk to Dumbledore and McGonagall. "I'll kill the bitch if she's run off with Harry!" Molly promised herself.


	3. Chapter 3

**Breaking Free**

A/N: The usual disclaimers, not my characters, no money being made etc. JKR owns the books and characters. Any additional characters or settings are mine.

Genera is Crime/Romance

Rating is M for future chapters. Story is of course AU.

Ship is Harry/Hermione

* * *

**Chapter 3.**

_Headmaster's office, Hogwarts:_

"Damn," Albus swore loudly, "it's that damn mudblood's fault. No, it's that idiot Weasley's fault, compounded by Granger! I should never have let muggleborns into my school. Without Granger, Harry would have sat quietly until he arrived at school. Then I would have noticed that he wasn't under proper control. Damn! Four Weasley's and they can't control a sixteen year old brat! The Granger girl will have to go, hopefully Severus can get rid of her."

...

Severus Snape had gone directly to Malfoy manor to apprise the Dark Lord of the missing pair of students. He'd passed Lucius as he scurried out of the manor on some errand or other. Lucius looked worried and Snape could only speculate that the Dark Lord had given him an unpleasant or difficult job.

"My Lord," Severus knelt at Voldemort's feet after being admitted to the Dark Lord's presence.

"You bring news Severus? It better be good!" Voldemort scowled.

A shiver made it's way to Snape's back. This wouldn't be good. "My Lord, the Potter brat and the mudblood Granger have disappeared. Both left the train together before it departed King's Cross. Potter must have broken through the control potion that he's been under for the past two years."

"Disappeared? And that old fool can't find them? Why Granger? What does she have to do with him? I've sent Lucius out on a raiding party, but I sense you haven't told me everything. What else?"

"Albus had a trace on him and the mudblood but that's gone as well as are her parents. Their house is empty as is their office. We have no idea where they are," Snape replied hesitantly.

"CRUCIO!" The Dark Lord held the pain curse for almost a minute and Snape collapsed in a quivering heap; spasms continuing to hold his body in a rictus of pain for another ten minutes.

"Stupid people, can't even control a simple boy!" Voldemort needed his spy, otherwise the greasy man would have joined so many other incompetent people he had killed over the years.

When Snape had recovered enough to apologize, the Dark Lord gave him new orders. "I want them found and brought to me. I don't care what happens to the mudblood...wait, maybe she'll be of some use. Yes, when Potter is before me, I'll show him what happens to those he apparently cares for. Her death will be slow and painful and he'll watch every minute of it. Who else is he friends with?"

"Albus has kept him potioned and isolated for the past two years, so I don't think he has any real friends. The Longbottom scion may have tried to make friends with him several years ago, but Albus potioned him to avoid Potter."

"What about the girl?"

"Granger? She has no friends at all. She's at the very bottom of the social order, being muggle born. She's smart though; certainly she's the best at Potions and the other teachers agree that she's probably the smartest witch in the school. Nobody likes her though–she's a know-it-all. Even her dorm mates shun her I'm told."

"Granger–that isn't even a magical name, although there was a Dagworth-Granger some years ago. I wonder if she's related? Severus, find out all you can about her background and her parents. If she's related to Hector Dagworth-Granger, it could be important."

Severus grimaced as he remembered something. Hector was the Founder of the Most Extraordinary Society of Potioneers, and a force to be reckoned with in his day. No wonder Ms. Granger was brilliant if she was related to him. Genes would always tell.

While Snape was pondering his orders, Lucius was drawing a blank in his search for Potter and his friends. Well, in truth, Potter had no friends, at least according to his son Draco. The Weasleys were seen by others as his friends, but Draco knew differently. He wondered how Potter even got through his lessons, he was so heavily potioned. Draco had informed him last evening that Potter had disappeared along with the mudblood Granger. The staff was in a tizzy looking for them.

Granger, Severus thought. He'd have to be careful if he found her. He hated to admit it, but she was brilliant, but what worried him even more was the thought of her being related to Hector Dagworth-Granger. If that was true then she couldn't be a mudblood after all. Hector had been a pureblood and an influential one at that and if the line ran true, then Ms. Granger would be aware of anything that he tried to do to Potter. Potions; his specialty, but Granger was something of a prodigy herself. Killing her would eventually bring a shite storm of problems down on himself and Albus. She would know how to counteract any potions fed to him, so Albus' plan to potion him again was doomed to failure if Ms. Granger was allowed to continue associating with him. "Damn, and the Dark Lord has taken notice of her as well."

...

_(Flashback, Harry's fourth year:)_

Harry had endured the Dursleys for most of his summer and was set to attend the Quidditch World Cup with the Weasley family. He'd been glad to get away from the oppression of his relative's home. Number 4 Privet Drive wasn't what Harry would call a happy home. Every summer since he'd turned eleven, Dumbledore had insisted that he return to that hell hole. Despite being a wizard, they had treated him even worse than before he'd found out the truth. Of course they'd learned that he was prohibited from using magic away from school and used that fact to mistreat him even more.

Then the Weasleys had come to get him and he'd thought that everything would be a bit better. How wrong he was. Right from the first meal, he could sense something had changed with the family. Oh, they seemed just as glad to see him and fed him as much as he could eat, and Molly insisted that he eat even more. He'd been drowsy for the rest of the day and when they left the next morning for the World Cup tournament, he'd still felt a bit lethargic. Shrugging it off, he ate a big breakfast and left with Ron, Ginny and the twins Fred and George with Arthur leading the way. He'd stumbled a bit, which seemed to amuse the twins and shook his head to clear up the confusion he felt overtake him. Soon they arrived and sat through an exciting game, with Ireland winning the game. At the end of the game, he felt a bit better. They left immediately afterward and he spent the rest of the holiday at the Burrow. Slowly he began to wonder what was happening to him, he seemed unable to make any kind of decisions. Molly and Arthur would make suggestions and he readily agreed, but afterwards wondered why. As the time approached to leave for school, he gave up trying to figure it out and just agreed with whatever they suggested. At school, he'd seen a cute Ravenclaw girl, but every time he thought about approaching her, Ron or the twins would distract him with some suggestion and he would forget about her. Ginny was now paying attention to him and he thought that maybe he liked her too. He just couldn't seem to concentrate anymore.

Somehow his name came out of the Goblet of Fire and he was forced to compete although he couldn't remember putting his name in the cup. He barely survived the first task and without help from Neville would surely have drowned in the second. The third task saw Cedric Diggory killed and Voldemort rise again, but he didn't seem to care. He had brief moments of lucidity and wondered what was happening to him, but after a good meal, he was back to his lethargic ways again.

Albus Dumbledore had hoped that Harry being entered into the tournament would finally kill the boy off, but it was not to be. He'd been dosing him too heavily and the third task had not gone as he'd planned. The Diggory boy had reached the cup first and had been portkeyed away. His body was returned, battered and bleeding and with signs of being crucio'd before being hit with the killing curse. His arm had been sliced open and blood taken, obviously for a dark ritual. Severus had confirmed that Voldemort had indeed risen again. That worried Albus, but that wouldn't affect his plans for Harry Potter. He'd be more careful in controlling the boy and it was time to bring the two youngest Weasleys into the plan.

All went well the next year with Harry none the wiser. Once or twice he caught the boy looking longingly at some girl in Ravenclaw but a subtle increase in the potion dose cured that.

_(End flashback)_

_..._

Severus Snape was diligently following clues that he hoped would lead him to the whereabouts of Potter. He'd already checked the Granger residence and business, only to discover the same as Wormtail had that their quarry had left no traces. He'd checked the Granger father's relatives, and found that indeed they were related to the Dagworth-Grangers. He had no way to check the mother's genealogy without knowing her maiden name but suspected it was a dead end. He'd checked the father's parents place but found they'd moved years before to Canada. A dead end. It took another two days to discover that Monica Granger's maiden name was Kelsey but then the trail grew cold. There were a lot of Kelseys in Britain. A week later he thought he'd located Mrs. Granger's mother, an Elizabeth Kelsey seemed to be a good possibility. She lived alone in Cambridge and was a muggle. He knocked on the door but there was no answer. Unlocking the door magically, he stepped inside to wait for Mrs. Kelsey to return. Unfortunately, he didn't realise the house was alarmed and a great screeching sound surrounded him. Trying to find the source of the sound, he'd waited too long and was suddenly confronted by a police constable.

"Sir, I'll ask you to come quietly. You are under arrest for breaking and entering and trespass."

Severus was so surprised that he'd automatically reached for his wand. Before he could bring it to bear, the constable brought his baton smartly down on Snape's wrist, disarming him. In a fit of anger, Snape lunged at the muggle only to be felled by the baton striking him in a very sensitive place. Groaning, he folded like a deck of cards and was quickly handcuffed.

"Now sir, no further resistance from you, if you please. I'll be escorting you to headquarters for booking and incarceration. You've just added attempted assault to the other charges. Come along quietly now."

The pain in his privates was almost too much to bear. The Dark Lord had never crucio'd anyone there. "When I get out, you'll die, muggle," Snape spat.

"Oh, threatening an officer of the law, are you. That's one more charge, and much more serious. You'll cool your heels in Old Bailey for a long time, I'll wager."

"You don't know who you're dealing with, you muggle filth!"

"I do know you'd best keep a civil tongue in your mouth, sir. I know your kind and I've handled worse."

"You have no idea what will happen to you," the greasy haired man smiled, although painfully.

Police Constable Gregory McDermott picked up the wand and inspected it closely. It looked like a plain piece of wood with strange markings on it, but Greg knew better. McDermott was a squib and knew a magical wand when he saw one. This case was now beyond his grade level; he'd see to it that it was bumped up to people that could properly deal with wizards. Perhaps he'd suggest MI5's Special Branch.

...

Severus Snape had been gone for more than a week now and Albus was getting worried. After all, how hard could it be to track down a pair of runaways. Severus had never failed him before. He needed Potter's money to support his allies in The Order of the Phoenix. He sighed. Good help was so hard to find now. He'd controlled Wizarding Britain for more than fifty years now, although most people only thought of him as the powerful Headmaster of Hogwarts, a post he'd held for more than forty years; and Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was much more than that. He had his hand in almost everything in the magical world. As a sop to the wizarding masses, he even let muggleborns and halfbloods attend Hogwarts, although he held them in little regard, relegating them in his mind as a servant class for purebloods.

Good teachers were even harder to find and he'd been pressured into accepting several against his better judgement. Filius Flitwick, although a competent teacher, was part Goblin and Albus kept a close eye on him, not completely trusting the small man. His deputy, Minerva McGonagall he trusted but took precautions, in case she turned on him. He never told her any of his secrets. He'd turned her to his way of thinking with a few well placed memory charms and obliviations over the years. The rest of the teachers were carefully chosen for their willingness to believe everything he told them.

...

Bertie Kelsey had returned home just as a police constable was escorting a shady looking character out her front door. Her alarm was still squawking loudly and she shivered at what that could mean.

"Constable McDermott, what's going on?"

"Ah, Mrs. Kelsey, this ruffian had invaded your house; your alarm alerted us and I was sent to investigate. I have him well in hand and will see him locked up. Have you seen this man before?"

"No, what was he after?"

"I think that will come out after we interrogate him. You needn't worry, ma'am he won't be bothering you again."

Severus glared at her, silently vowing retribution on her and the constable. "You'll see me soon enough, missy," he growled. "You and the rest of the muggle filth I find."

Bertie gasped, covering her mouth pretending to cough. This was one of the wizards after her family, she realised. Thank God the Grangers and Mr. Potter had left a week ago.

After the constable had left, Bertie entered her home and disabled the alarm. She'd been warned by her granddaughter that there might be people that would try to find them and to be careful. Now might be a good time to close up the house and move to the cottage she still owned in Devon. Nobody here knew about it and she hadn't been there in years, since her dear husband died.

Harry and Hermione would be travelling in France with her parents. Hedwig had returned a day after he had sent her to the Delacours, with an invitation to visit their mansion near Bordeaux.

...


End file.
